Research Associate applicants have rated the interview process at Harvard Business School with 2.9 out of 5 (where 5 is the highest level of difficulty) and assessed their interview experience as 77% positive. To compare, the company-average is 62.5% positive. This is according to Glassdoor user ratings.
Candidates applying for Research Associate roles take an average of 58 days to get hired, when considering 31 user submitted interviews for this role. To compare, the hiring process at Harvard Business School overall takes an average of 42 days.
Common stages of the interview process at Harvard Business School as a Research Associate according to 31 Glassdoor interviews include:
Phone interview: 29%
One on one interview: 27%
Skills test: 14%
Presentation: 14%
Background check: 10%
Group panel interview: 3%
Drug test: 3%
Here are the most commonly searched roles for interview reports -
Two rounds. One with admin people and the other with faculty. Standard questions. I was also asked for coding sample. Questions mostly related to prior research experience and also fluency in econometrics and prior coding experience.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Describe an empirical research project and tell me which coding languages you are familiar with
I interviewed at Harvard Business School in Sep 2025
Interview
I've had two rounds till now, first was a 40 mins zoom call with the HR, it was pretty simple and straightforward, talking about research interests, previous experiences and future plans. The next round was a 90 mins quantitative exercise. The exercise wasn't too difficult to be completed in the given time period.
Interview questions [1]
Question 1
Tell me about a time during your research when you faced a challenge, and how did you overcome it?
I had a phone screen with an HR recruiter, next step was a take home tech test with programming and written stuff, 1:1 with profs about research interests and technical skills